“Saraseeeeruha Naabha”

An anguished cry rose from the bottom of his heart. Silent though, as he strained to climb the few steps to reach the ottakkal mandapam, adjacent to the sanctum sanctorum of his Lord Padmanabha, his familial and his own deity. He felt unsteady and had to support himself by holding on to one of the pillars. He was afraid that he might fall on the sacred floor, where anything that fell by chance, be it money or ornaments, would be confiscated and would belong to Padmanabha. Was he really afraid of such a turn of events? He had already surrendered his triple entities, ‘mano’, ‘vak’ and ‘kayam’, mind, word and body to the Lord a long time ago.